Bottle-seal.



WITNESSES w fimjmwv,

PATENTED FEB. 28, 1905.

H. C. MODOUGALL. BOTTLE SEAL.

APPLIGATION FILED 001. 24, 1904.

IVVENTOR. BY

W A TTORNE Y.

N0. WB3,885.

lffi rrnn Smarts Patented February 28, 1 905.

PATENT OFFICE.

earnest-2m...

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 783,885, dated. February 28, 1905.

Application filed October 24, 190 Serial No. 229,850,

Be it known that I, H ARRY U. MoDoueALL, of Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and improved Bottle-Seal, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in devices for sealing bottles to prevent unlawful tampering with them and to prevent the contents from being taken out either surreptitiously or by accident.

The object of my invention is to produce a cheap and simple device which is independent of the bottle, but which can be easily applied to an ordinary bottleneck, so as to fasten the stopple securely in place.

My invention is intended to be either ap plied to the bottle when it is first filled and is placed on sale in a way to indicate if the bottle is tampered with or to apply it to a bottle after it has been opened and lock the stopple, so that the contents cannot be secured except by breaking the bottleor by one having a key to the seal. in the latter case the bottle-seal is particularly adapted for use on bottles containing poison and so a person will not accidentally use any of the contents, because he must of necessity go through the formality of unlocking the seal. The locked seal is also applicable to bottles containing liquors and other things which it is desired to keep private.

\Vith these and other ends in view my invention consists of certain features of construction and combinations of parts, which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of my device as applied to a bottle. lfig. 2 is a broken side elevation, partly in section, and showing the means of locking the seal. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the structure shown in Fig. l, but with the bottle removed; and Fig. 4L is a per spective view of a slight modification of the invention.

The seal is provided with a flexible collar 10, which preferably of thin metal and which is adapted to be fastened around the i bottle-neck, the collar having to this end on its upper edge a series of liat-ended teeth, which have preferably a spring action and which are inclined inward, the teeth being also arranged preferably to slightly overlap, as shown in Fig. 3. The collar can be used without the teeth; but it is better to have them, because they thus adapt the collar to necks of slightly-diflerent sizes, and the teeth can project inward so as to catch under the shoulder 12, with which the bottle may be provided.

Secured to the collar and perpendicular thereto is a band 13, also preferably of light sheet metal, and this is made fast to the back of the collar, a convenient means being by punching out an eyelet 14: from the material of the collar and forcing it through a hole in the band and clenching it, as shown clearly in Fig. 2. Obviously, however, the parts can be fastened together in many other ways. The band 13 is adapted to extend up over the bottle-top and stopple, and to this end it is preferably stamped at the top, as shown at 13, and provided with a hole 15, so that if desired a corkscrew can be inserted in the stopplc before the band is removed. The free end of the band is slotted, as shown at 16, to receive the ends 17 of the collar, which ends are preferably perforated, as at 18, and these ends can be thrust through the slot 16 and doubled over flat against the collar, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. After this is done if the bottle is newly lilled a stamp or seal of any kind can be pasted over the flattened ends 17, and if a purchaser of the bottle and contents linds the seal broken he has reason to suspect that the contents have been tampered with. After the bottle has been opened and as its contents are used it can be locked by placing a padlock 19 in engagement with the perforated ends 17 of the collar 10, as shown in Fig. 52, and if desired the bottle can be sold as an original package with the lock so applied. in some cases I prefer to apply a lock 20 direct to one end of the band 13, with openings in the rear of the lock, in which case the opposite ends of the collar can have clips 21, with keys 22 adapted to enter and engage the mechanism of the lock,

or any suitable device can be made on the collar to engage the look. This latter form is Well adapted for use on poison-packages and bottles.

It will thus be seen that I provide -a very simplemeans of locking the bottle, and it will be noticed that the seal besides securing the bottle against unlawful tampering and guarding against accidents also affords a strong device to retain effervescent liquors in the bottle.

Having thus fully described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A bottle-seal comprising a collar to extend around a bottle-neck, the said collar having its top edge slitted and turned slightly in- Ward to form teeth, said teeth adapting themselves to the diameter of. the bottle-neck, a band secured to the collar and arranged to go over the bottle-top, and means for securing the ends of the collar and the free end of the band together.

2. A bottle-seal comprising a collar to extend around a bottle-neck, the said collar having its top edge slitted and turned slightly inward, a band secured at one end to the collar and arranged to go over the bottle-top, and a lock on the free end of the band to receive and hold the ends of the collar.

HARRY C. MODOUGALL.

Vitnesses:

\VM. H. CAMFIELD, A. E. BUREKER. 

